Maru Arakawa was not nearly as relaxed as he appeared. In fact, he was under immense pressure. How could he not feel the weight of the coming storm?
But it wasn't a matter of simply wanting to back down. The entire Arakawa clan was currently filled with righteous indignation, believing the Kazekage's actions were far too tyrannical.
We, the Arakawa, are the greatest noble house in the Sand! We hold the richest lands, the most assets, and the most complete maritime trade routes.
Our contribution to the Land of Wind's annual economy is gargantuan!
In their eyes, they were a juggernaut—not a force the Kazekage could simply dismantle at a whim. The majority of the clan members staunchly supported Maru in his defiance against Shiraishi to maintain the family's prestige.
This left Maru in a "tiger-riding" position; if he showed even a hint of wavering, the elders and the furious young clansmen would likely tear him to pieces themselves.
Antagonism toward the Kazekage reached a fever pitch. Some even brought up the old grievance of how Shiraishi had "tricked" the Arakawa out of their interests using the Spark Technique years ago, painting the Kazekage as a greedy opportunist who excelled at getting something for nothing.
Hearing these rumors, Maru felt a deep bitterness. Before his father, Akita Arakawa, passed away, he had explicitly ordered Maru to apologize for the Spark incident.
Maru had not only failed to do so but had forgotten it entirely. Now, someone was deliberately fanning these old flames to push the Arakawa into a dead end.
The Revenge of Arashi
Who was Shiraishi now? The "Modern-Day Madara," the most powerful Kazekage in history. Bringing up the Spark incident now was a death sentence; it reminded the Kage of the Arakawa's past petty obstructionism, giving him all the more reason to be ruthless.
"Brother Arashi, you must help the Arakawa family survive this."
The appearance of Arashi Arakawa was like a life-saving straw for Maru. Arashi watched Maru's desperate reaction, a faint, imperceptible smile playing at the corners of his mouth.
"Then why won't you surrender the land deeds and documents?" Arashi asked.
"It's beyond my control now!" Maru cried. "The moment I move to do so, the clansmen won't let me live. I'm surrounded by their eyes."
Arashi felt nothing but contempt. Maru had been the first to refuse the surrender when it started, only to blame his kin now that the situation turned dire.
"Since the clansmen are coercing you, the village high command will help you solve this 'trouble,'" Arashi said smoothly.
Maru's eyes lit up. "Will the Kazekage and the Elders believe me?"
"Of course. After all, the Arakawa is a massive family."
To save his own skin, Maru was ready to sell out his kin. Arashi, playing his part perfectly, handed Maru a document. "Take a look. Is this the list of the 'troublemakers'?"
Maru looked at the list. It was a dense catalog of every core member of the Arakawa clan—the heads of various industrial sectors, regional managers, and even affiliated merchant groups.
As the head of the Intelligence Department, Arashi had personally drafted this list. He knew the Arakawa's assets better than Shiraishi did.
His years in intelligence had turned his heart into a deep, dark well; while he worked loyally for Shiraishi, his private vengeance against the family that had once discarded him was finally coming to fruition.
To Arashi, the night his father treated his life as a political pawn was an indelible nightmare. He often dreamed of the heads of his companions being presented as "gifts" by Akita Arakawa.
That cold-blooded ruthlessness had buried a seed of revenge in Arashi's soul that was now a towering tree.
The Purge
"Maru, sign this list, and your life is safe. Leave the rest to me."
Arashi's gentle whisper finally broke Maru's resolve. He signed with a trembling hand. Arashi took the list and stepped out of the Arakawa gates.
Soon after, the three combat battalions surrounding the compound withdrew. The Arakawa clan broke into cheers, celebrating what they perceived as the Kazekage's "retreat." However, the village's high-level officials remained in a pregnant silence, waiting for the real blow.
In the Kazekage's office, Shiraishi looked at the list submitted by Arashi. With a heavy stroke of his pen, he authorized the operation.
At dusk, the action began.
Three of Shiraishi's Chakra-Core-controlled puppet clones, the three elite battalions, and fifteen squads of ANBU—totaling over six hundred shinobi—infiltrated the Arakawa estate from all directions.
Blood stained the Arakawa halls. The clansmen, caught off guard in the midst of their celebration, were thrown into chaos.
Against the lethal efficiency of Shiraishi's puppets and the elite shinobi, the Arakawa "super-clan" collapsed in less than thirty minutes. The core leadership was arrested in a single sweep.
Following the arrests, Maru Arakawa stood before the village to publicly announce their "crimes": smuggling contraband, specifically selling explosive tags and munitions to Konoha, the Cloud, and the Mist.
In short: High Treason.
"...They are hereby stripped of their Arakawa name and expelled, to be dealt with by the village laws."
Maru finished the reading with a trembling voice and stepped down, his face ashen. Shortly after, the "traitors" were taken to the outskirts of the village for a mass execution.
Shiraishi's move was decisive. He had used the incident to surgically remove the greatest internal obstacle to his maritime trade plans.
While the purge caused tremors among the noble families of other villages, the ordinary citizens of the Sand were largely indifferent. They were too busy celebrating a different piece of news:
The Kazekage had activated a new, massive Electromagnetic Barrier that promised to permanently shield the village from the desert's sandstorms.
However, while the village celebrated its new era, the atmosphere in the medical ward was suffocating. Rasa stood outside the delivery room, his face pale with anxiety. His wife, Karura, had gone into premature labor, and the situation was critical.
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